Fredegund biography of william

The author of the Liber Historiae Francorum even credits her with devising an ingenious military plan involving camouflage of her troops, resulting in a military victory over King Childebert's forces. Though her ruthless attention to details could potentially thwart her son Lothair II's future career, Fredegund managed to keep his position as Neustrian king intact.

When in Fredegund died a natural death—"old and full of days," according to the Liber Historiae Francorum, although she was only 50—her son buried her body at St. Vincent the Martyr's basilica in Paris, but he kept alive her hatred for Brunhilda and his rival Austrasian cousins. In , Lothair II defeated them, and, assuming the title of sole king of all the Franks, he tortured and had the octogenarian Brunhilda torn limb from limb by wild horses.

Fredegund's son was one of the last effective Merovingian kings, and he ruled over a united realm that helped to inspire the Carolingian dynasty's appetite for unity nearly years later. The Fourth Book of the Chronicle of Fredegar, with its continuations. NY: Thomas Nelson, History of the Franks by Gregory, Bishop of Tours. Selections translated with notes by Ernest Brehaut.

NY: W. Norton, The History of the Franks by Gregory of Tours. Translated with an introduction by O. Oxford: Clarendon Press, Liber Historiae Francorum. Edited and translated with an introduction by Bernard Bachrach. Lawrence, KA: Coronado Press, Deanesly, Margaret. A History of Early Medieval Europe, — NY: Barnes and Noble, Wemple, Suzanne Fonay.

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Fred Meyer Stores, Inc. Fred Griffith. Fred Ebb. Come, let us burn these unjust taxation rolls, let us be content with the revenue that satisfied our father Clotaire. Follow me. Even though we lose our beloved children we shall at least escape eternal punishment. That she really ruled rather than Chilperic, or that at any rate she was the moving spirit in much political action that wu taken, is evident from what has already been narrated or referred to, especially from the stories of Praetextatns and Leudastes.

Nor was she without vigour and resources in adversity as well as in prosperity. On the murder of her husband she was left with her infant son Clotairc. She took refuge and sanctuary at Paris, and was astute enough to place herself for the moment under the protection of Guntram, the least dangerous of her enemies, escaping but only just escaping the vengeance of Childebert.

I have a little child that I desire to place in his arms. Subsequently she had to retire to Rueil vii. Later on her capital was at Tournai, and it was there that in order to maintain internal peace within her realm she caused three turbulent Frankish chiefs to be murdered at her table x. Apparently a rising took place, Fredegund was seized, and was to be delivered over to Childebert.

Again she appealed to Guntram, and got him solemnly to preside at the baptism of Clotaire x. In Guntram died, and Childebert became sole king of the Franks. Hauses , p. A few months afterwards she died, in , and was buried in St. Even though she may not have been guilty of the murder of her husband, it is preposterous to attempt to exalt her in any way into a heroine.

The eulogy upon her by Fortuuatus Carm. But apologies such as were made in the last century by M. The Neustrian ex-domesticus Leunardus travelled to the Cathedral of Paris, where the Queen was staying, to relay the news of Rigunth's capture. By Gregory's account, Fredegund was so enraged at Leunardus's message that she ordered his public humiliation in the center of the church.

She had him beaten, chained, and jailed along with the cooks and bakers who accompanied him on the journey. She stopped short of killing him, however, due to his political status in the region. She took sanctuary in the cathedral of Paris. During Fredegund's regency, she maintained the support of the clergy. According to Gregory Halfond, it was found that a core group of a dozen bishoprics in Northern Gaul remained loyal to Fredegund and Chlothar.

Fredegund is said to have ordered the assassination of Sigebert I of Austrasia in and also to have made attempts on the lives of Sigebert's son Childebert II , her brother-in-law Guntram , king of Burgundy , and Brunhild. Newly widowed, Fredegund attempted to seduce the Neustrian official Eberulf but was ultimately rejected. Gregory of Tours later suspects her of orchestrating Eberulf's subsequent assassination.

Additionally, Gregory of Tours suggests that the persecution of the Bishop Praetextatus was largely driven by Fredegund. However, the Bishop was not concerned because he believed he would receive his reward in heaven, whereas Fredegund would be punished in hell. Praetextatus urged her to repent of her sins before finally succumbing to his wounds.

Fredegund later conducted assassination plots against a number of political officials who condemned the assassination, including the Bishop of Bayeux and King Guntram. Fredegund died of natural causes on 8 December in Paris. Fredegund did not live to see it, but her son's execution of Brunhilda bore the mark of her conflict with Fredegund. Clothar II, then the king, ordered that she be tied by the arms and hair to the tail of a young, untamed horse, and dragged through the entire army.

As soon as the king gave this order, it was carried out. The first time the man who was on the horse dug his spurs in, the horse kicked up his heels with such force that Brunhilda's head flew off. Her body was dragged through the bushes and brambles, over hills and dales, so that it was torn to pieces, limb from limb. Fredegund traditionally has had a negative reputation.

According to Gregory of Tours , it is understood that as queen, Fredegund involved herself in court intrigue and was responsible for numerous assassination plots on political figures and clergy alike, such as the Bishop of Rouen, Praetextatus, and King Guntram of Burgundy. Halfond mentions the existence of inconsistencies regarding the relationships within the Neustrian court.

For example, Bishop Leudovald whom Fredegund is mentioned to have targeted for assassination after the plot against Praetextatus succeeded for fear that Leudovald would find out and expose her. Whether she had planned the assassination or had been surprised by it, Fredegund's immediate situation was extremely dangerous. Seeking sanctuary in the cathedral at Paris, along with her personal treasury and her infant son, she sent a message to Chilperic's brother King Guntram, placing her and her son, Chlothar, under his protection.

He and her nephew-in-law King Childebert-son of her old enemies Sigibert and Brunhild—both converged on Paris. Luckily for Fredegund, Guntram got there first. Childebert's emissaries brought a simple message to Guntram: "Hand over the murderess, the woman who garrotted my aunt, the woman who killed first my father, and then my uncle, and who put my two cousins to the sword.

While Fredegund was still hiding in the cathedral, she began accusing various people of theft and worse, prompting Gregory to claim: "Fredegund had no fear of God, in whose house she had sought sanctuary, and she was the prime mover in many outrages. Fredegund could hardly bear this quiet life of retirement in the countryside, since, wrote Gregory, "She was very depressed because much of her power had come to an end, and yet she considered herself a better woman than Brunhild.

When he was caught and sent back to her, she had his hands and feet cut off. For her next project she sent two clerics, armed with swords specially grooved to hold poison, after both Brunhild and Brunhild's son King Childebert. Caught along with another of her agents, they were tortured, mutilated, and killed. Attending church in Rouen, Fredegund had a hostile encounter with an old enemy, Bishop Praetextatus, whose words Gregory reports: "In exile and out of exile I have always been a bishop.

But when you give up your role as Queen you will be plunged into the abyss. It would be better for you to abandon your stupid malicious behavior. As one would expect, "The Queen bore his words ill. She was extremely angry. After he had been carried still living to his bed, she called upon him under the pretext of offering her own doctors.

Giving her one last lecture, Praetextatus died without further assistance. When a local leader came to call, expressing his opinion that she had gone too far, Fredegund offered him a hospitable drink that killed him within an hour. She attempted to assassinate Leudovald, bishop of Bayeux, for trying to bring her to justice, and sent agents to try to kill King Guntram, when he too took a strong stand against the assassination of bishops during mass.

Meanwhile, having never made it to Spain with her large dowry, Fredegund's daughter Rigunth was stranded in Toulouse where her own situation was now perilous. Though Fredegund was finally able to rescue her daughter, they were unable to live together happily. Gregory claimed that "she would often insult her mother to her face, and they often exchanged slaps and punches.

Inviting Rigunth to lean over into the treasure chest and pick out whatever she liked, Fredegund tried to break her neck with the lid. Servants pulled her off just in time to keep Rigunth from being strangled. Clearly, there was little possibility that mother and daughter could live on their manor placidly after that, and Gregory described the aftermath: "There were never-ending outbursts of temper and even fisticuffs.

The main cause was Rigunth's habit of sleeping with all and sundry. Some of Fredegund's projects in Rouen prospered, while others did not. A team of 12 more assassins sent after King Childebert were caught, and some killed themselves in prison rather than face the torture and mutilation inflicted on the others. When a blood feud between two large families in Tournai became a hazard to public safety, Fredegund warned them to stop.

When they would not, she invited them to a dinner of reconciliation. As all were seated at the table, the three survivors of the original quarrel were simultaneously beheaded by axemen. The problem, quite simply, was solved. Most important, she convinced Guntram to bring her son to Paris for baptism which was then routinely delayed long past infancy and to allow her to participate in the ceremony.

From there it was a short step to replace the men around Chlothar and become regent herself, although she accepted an arrangement which left Guntram as Chlothar's godfather and protector. Naturally, she did not remain in the background during her regency. In , the childless Guntram died, leaving his kingdom to King Childebert and touching off war between the two surviving royal families.

The Liber Historiae Francorum claims that Fredegund took to the field herself after Landeric fell in battle. Fredegar associated her with the year-old Chlothar in describing Neustria's victories in "Fredegundis and her son King Chlotar took possession of Paris and other cities after the barbarian fashion. She died unaware that the now aged, but heretofore astute, Brunhild would make the fatal error that would leave Fredegund's son, Chlothar II, the ruler of a reunited Francia.

Fredegund biography of william

In , Brunhild's grandson died, and she refused to partition the two kingdoms among his four sons or even to separate Burgundy from Austrasia again. Powerful dukes who wanted more recognition of their regional authority defected and in one campaign Chlothar reunited all of Francia, celebrating his victory by having the elderly Brunhild tied to horses and dragged to death in memory of his mother.

Nonetheless, Fredegund could not have been an altogether terrible mother, because Fredegar described her son as "strong-minded and well-read, a god-fearing man, kindly disposed to all and full of piety. Fredegar, in fact, regarded this as his main failing, commenting that he "took too much notice of the views of women young and old. Still, Nelson insisted: "Fredegund's is probably the best-documented case of a king's passion giving his consort long-term political ascendance.

Fredegund used her ascendance not only to accumulate wealth and power but also to contribute to some of the processes which were to transform Europe: the rise of the mayors of the palace, steps taken toward the creation of an exchequer, and the union if only temporary this time of Francia.